MAP moot links ‘reinvention’ to sustained growth

KARACHI: Down the line, the chances of survival will be higher for only those businesses that are ready to reinvent themselves according to their customers’ needs, while technology can help streamline the whole process in the best of ways, experts said on Wednesday.

Speakers, mostly leading management professionals from the industry, expressed these views during the 20th Management Association of Pakistan (MAP) Convention held here at the local hotel under the theme of ‘Reinventing management in the age of technology’.

Irfan Wahab Khan, CEO Telenor Pakistan, said there was tremendous data in the smart applications that could changed the lives of the people.

“Digital media has overtaken the traditional media in the world,” Khan said adding in our market 25 percent spending was going into the digital media.

He said his company’s app on agriculture was being used by six million farmers, who increased their production by 15 percent by using the guidance provided through the app.

Khurram Hamid, chief digital officer, Pfizer, Asia Pacific Region, said the traditional senior leadership had a fixed mindset that led towards failure. “Understand the customer and develop product to provide service to them,” Hamid said.

Umair Hameed, partner, Financial Services, FinTech, RegTech, KPMG (UAE), said trust was the main thing in any business, mostly in electronic and digital world.

Hameed said there was lot of potential of moving towards ‘block chain’ technology in Pakistan. “By adopting block chain in elections, one will get results of votes soon after the process is completed. There will be no disputes on delays,” he said.

Sharjeel Shahid, group executive digital banking, UBL, said after the digitalisation, only 32 percent banking customers were physically visiting the bank branches. “In the future direct connection of the bank with the customer will become seamless,” Shahid added. Terra Biz and Jang Group were the lead and the media partners of the convention respectively.